Specialist Care for Gastrointestinal, Thyroid, Parathyroid & Adrenal Conditions
Endoscopy & BRAVO
Gastroscopy & Colonoscopy
'Endoscopy' (aka magic eye) refers to examination of the gut (gastrointestinal tract) with a flexible scope. The flexible scope is passed into the gut to examine the inside lining of the gut. It allows biopsies and minor therapeutic procedures to be carried out.
The most common procedures are gastroscopy, flexible sigmoidoscopy and colonoscopy. Other more complicated procedures like endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) which examines the biliary tree and enteroscopy that examines the small bowel are also under the umbrella of endoscopy.
Gastroscopy:
Gastroscopy is sometimes also referred to as endoscopy or OGD (OesophagoGastricDuodenoscopy). This procedure can be carried out either under a local anaesthetic throat spray or under sedation. The telescope is passed via the mouth to examine the oesophagus (gullet), stomach and the beginning of the small intestines (duodenum). This test is often used to look for hiatus hernia, oesophagitis, gastritis, ulcers and is an important tool for diagnosing upper abdominal (tummy) pain.
Colonoscopy & Flexible Sigmoidoscopy:
Colonoscopy refers to the examination of the entire colon. A flexible sigmoidoscopy refers to examining the lower half of the colon. Colonoscopy is often carried out under sedation and analgesia.
This test is often used for looking for causes of rectal bleeding, change in bowel habits, polyps, cancer, inflammatory bowel disease (eg. Crohns' disease & Ulcerative colitis) and abdominal pain. It allows us to take biopsies as well as removing polyps and other therapeutic procedures.
Bravo pH Monitoring System:
The Bravo™ pH Monitoring System is a patient-friendly catheter-free (no tubes or wires) method of measuring oesophageal acidity (pH) levels in patients who have or suspected to have acid reflux (heartburn aka GORD).
With the Bravo system, patients can go about with their usual diet and activities while having their acidity (pH) levels measured without the inconvenience and discomfort of the traditional catheter-based test which involves placing and leaving a catheter through the nose for 24hrs.
The Bravo system provides information that is more representative of the patients day-to-day activities than traditional pH monitoring methods because patients are able to maintain a normal diet and activity level during testing.
How does BRAVO work?
The Bravo system use a small pH capsule about the size of a pill that is attached to the lining of your gullet (oesophagus) where it can monitor the acidity and transmits the information to a pager-sized receiver worn by the patient.
The BRAVO capsule is usually placed at the time of gastroscopy. The capsule is placed in the gullet by a wire delivery system like a long spaghetti. The BRAVO capsule attaches to the gullet by a suction clip and the delivery wire detaches and is withdrawn. The procedure usually takes about a minute to perform.
This allows the patient to continue with their normal activities, diet, exercises and sleep.This is in contrast to the traditional catheter-based pH monitoring with the catheter through the nose that is uncomfortable and conspicuous; often leads to patients modifying their daily activities and/or diet, in some cases aborting the test prematurely due to the discomfort.
While traditional pH tests are conducted for 24 hours, the Bravo system allows physicians to monitor over a 48 hours to give a more representative picture for classification of GORD.